2022 Projection: Algeria’s Natural Gas Exports To Italy Expected To Soar By 20%

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September 22, 2022

The UN has received enough pledges of funding to begin the first phase of the salvage operation on the decaying Safer oil tanker, David Gressly, the organization’s resident and humanitarian coordinator in Yemen, announced.

The vessel, which contains more than 1.14 million barrels of oil, has been moored in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen for more than seven years.

It has had little or no maintenance during that time and its condition has deteriorated to a point where there are growing fears of a catastrophic oil spill.

The planned salvage operation to make it safe is split into two phases: The transfer of the oil from the tanker to another vessel, followed by a permanent storage solution until the political situation in Yemen allows for it to be sold or be transported elsewhere.

Speaking during a briefing on the sidelines of the 77th Session of the UN General Assembly, Gressly said 17 countries contributed to raising the $75 million needed for the first phase of the operation, including $10 million from Saudi Arabia, in addition to contributions from private sector, public foundations and a crowdfunding campaign organized by the UN.

A second donation of $7 million by the Netherlands ensured the target was reached.

Iran Says Ready For New Nuclear Deal, Asks If United States Is

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September 22, 2022

Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi insisted Wednesday that his country is serious about reviving a deal meant to prevent it from acquiring a nuclear bomb but questioned whether Tehran could trust America’s commitment to any eventual accord.

The U.S. had already “trampled” on a previous deal, President Raisi told the U.N. General Assembly, referring to America’s decision to pull out of the accord in 2018.

Ever since Iran’s 1979 revolution that overthrew its Western-backed shah, Tehran has been at odds with the United States and has sought to project itself as a counterweight to American power.

Tehran’s resolve to resist U.S. pressure has seen it build close ties with countries like Russia, develop a domestic ballistic missile program and attempt to export its narrow revolutionary ideals to countries across the Mideast through Shiite militias and proxies.

Its nuclear program, which Iran insists is for peaceful energy purposes, is seen as an extension of its defiance of an American-led world order.

After former U.S. President Donald Trump walked away from the deal brokered by the Obama administration, Tehran steadily abandoned every limitation the accord imposed on its nuclear enrichment.

But efforts to salvage the deal are now nearing a take-it-or-leave-it inflection point. European Union officials have warned the window for securing a nuclear deal is about to close.

In exchange for agreeing to the terms of the new nuclear deal, Iran would receive relief on economic sanctions and be given greater access to global financial markets and the flow of U.S. dollars.

Saudi Space Commission To Send 1ST Saudi Woman To Space In 2023

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September 22, 2022

Saudi Arabia will send the first Saudi woman to space in 2023 as part of the Saudi Space Commission’s new space program.

The new space program will send a Saudi crew to space, marking a historical event for the country.

The authority announced the launch of its astronaut program Thursday, which aims to produce qualified and experienced Saudi citizens that will take part in long and short-term space flights, participate in scientific experiments, international research and future space-related missions, according to SPA.

The move is part of the Kingdom’s aim to allow its citizens take advantage of the promising opportunities available in the space sector globally and to contribute to research that serves humanity, SPA said.

The new program comes under the umbrella of Saudi Vision 2030 and will fall under the National Space Strategy – the details of which will be announced in the coming months.

Security Council Must Restrain Russia From Nuclear Threats – U.S Secretary Of State

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September 22, 2022

UN General Assembly Security Council — United States' Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during high level Security Council meeting on the situation in Ukraine, Thursday, Sept. 22, 2022 at United Nations headquarters. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on every U.N. Security Council member to “send a clear message” to Russia that it must stop its nuclear threats in the war in Ukraine.

Blinken used a council session Thursday to criticize Russia’s invasion and press other countries to join in their forceful condemnations of the conflict.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier this week that his nuclear-armed country “certainly use all means available to us” if its territory is threatened and to defend the country and its people.

Blinken said, “Every council member should send a clear message that these reckless nuclear threats must stop immediately,” A day after President Joe Biden assailed Russian leader Vladimir Putin for what he called egregious violations of the U.N. Charter and international law, the U.S. made the case at the U.N. Security Council that Russia should face further censure and isolation for its invasion.

Blinken listed several allegations of war crimes and other atrocities and called on countries that have yet to speak out forcefully against them as an affront to international order.

As the meeting began, there were already signs of a charged atmosphere around the council’s famous horseshoe-shaped table.

Putin Mobilizes 300,000 Russian Troops, Warns West Over Nuclear Blackmail

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September 22, 2022

Russia is now trying to consolidate control over its occupied territories. The Russian-controlled “People’s Republics” of Donetsk and Luhansk has announced “referendums” on union with Russia. The Russian occupation authorities in the Ukrainian regions of Cherson and Zaporizhia followed on Tuesday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the country’s first mobilization since the Second World War to fight in Ukraine on Wednesday, with about 300,000 military reservists called up.

Putin and his defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, called the move a “partial mobilization,” with the 300,000 coming from an approximate two million in the reserves. Putin said the mobilization was to defend Russia and its territories, adding that the West did not want peace in Ukraine.

The Russian President also appeared to make a thinly veiled threat of using nuclear weapons, saying that “nuclear blackmail has come into play” by western nation and saying he’d remind those making statements that Russia has its own “variety of weapons of destruction.”

Swiss Central Bank Enacts Biggest-Ever Key Interest Rate Hike

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September 22, 2022

Switzerland Economy — The Swiss National Bank in Zurich, Switzerland, Thursday Sept. 22, 2022. Switzerland’s central bank has carried out the biggest hike ever to its key interest rate in an effort to clamp down on inflation. The Swiss National Bank said in a statement Thursday that it could not rule out further increases beyond the increase of three-quarters of a percentage point rise “to ensure price stability over the medium term.” (Michael Buholzer/Keystone via AP)

Switzerland’s central bank carried out the biggest hike ever to its key interest rate Thursday, following the U.S. Federal Reserve and other central banks around the world in aggressive moves to fight inflation.

The Swiss National Bank said it could not rule out further increases beyond the rise of three-quarters of a percentage point “to ensure price stability over the medium term.” It aims to cool off inflation that came in at 3.5% in August.

The rate increased from minus 0.25% to 0.5%, ending several years of negative interest rates in Switzerland — a testament to the stable growth, low-inflation environment, coupled with Switzerland’s appeal as a safe haven for assets.

In essence, that negative interest rate environment meant that people who parked assets in Switzerland paid for the privilege, a counterintuitive idea for many investors who might expect a return on their savings.

Bank Of England Pressed To Follow Us Fed With Big Rate Hike

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September 22, 2022

Bank of England, Britain’s central bank is under pressure to make another big interest rate hike Thursday, with inflation outpacing other major economies but the U.S. Federal Reserve and other banks acting more aggressively to get prices under control.

The Bank of England hiked its benchmark rate last month by half a percentage point to 1.75%, the biggest increase in 27 years, and it’s expected to at least match that in its latest decision, which was delayed a week as the United Kingdom mourned Queen Elizabeth II.

Faced with a slumping currency, tight labor market and inflation near its highest in four decades, officials may feel the need to act more aggressively as rising food and energy prices fuel a cost-of-living crisis that is considered the worst in a generation.

But giving pause could be economic relief measures from new Prime Minister Liz Truss’ government that are expected to ease inflation short term.

World Expo 2030 Aimed To Diversify Saudi Economy

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September 22, 2022

Toward the end of March this year, as the massive gates that served as Expo 2020 Dubai’s entrances closed for the last time, those who had worked tirelessly to create the award-winning Saudi pavilion were all too aware of the possibility that the World Expo might be hosted by the Kingdom itself in 2030.

Expo 2030 is a proposed world fair to be held in 2030.

Speaking on March 28 during the closing ceremony for the Saudi pavilion, Fahd Al-Rasheed, the CEO of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City, struck a chord when he said: “Millions of people who visited the award-winning Saudi pavilion got a glimpse of the future that the Kingdom and its capital are building. Today is just the start of showing what Riyadh has to offer for Expo 2030.”

Saudi Arabia submitted its bid for the World Expo 2030 in October last year, in a letter sent by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), the international organizing body for the global event since 1931.

The crown prince’s words were echoed in the theme of the Kingdom’s bid: “The Era of Change: Leading the Planet to a Foresighted Tomorrow.”

Saudi Arabia’s desire to host World Expo 2030 goes hand in hand with Saudi Vision 2030, which was unveiled by the crown prince in 2016 and aims, among other things, to diversify the Saudi economy and develop the nation’s tourism and recreation sectors.

Expo 2030 is scheduled to begin on Oct. 1, 2030, and continue until April 1 the following year.

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mediates In Russia-Ukraine Prisoner Release

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September 22, 2022